Aslan Sourcing, a European-run sourcing agency in Suzhou and Shenzhen, sources private-label cleaning tools for European trade buyers: brushes from a brush manufacturer in Suzhou that we work with directly, boat vacuums from a 700-person vacuum manufacturer, and a wider marine cleaning range. Only the buyer pays us, a published commission of 4 to 8 percent of order value, and the factory invoices the goods to you as importer of record.
Private label means goods a factory makes that you sell under your own brand. We source white-label products, the factory’s existing design under your brand, and ODM products, where ODM (original design manufacturer) means the factory’s own design adapted to your specification. Our guide to private label, OEM (original equipment manufacturer) and ODM explains the difference in full.
The categories we source
| Category | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Deck and hull brushes | Deck brushes in soft, medium, stiff and flow-through, curved hull brushes, bilge and detail brushes, swivel and quick-connect heads. |
| Industrial and technical brushes | Roller, conductive, anti-static, polishing and tube brushes, made to your drawing. |
| Vacuum and robot vacuum brushes | Brushes for vacuums and robot vacuums under your brand, quoted from a photo or sample. |
| Household and pet brushes | Brushes for the home and for pets, from the same brush manufacturer. |
| Wet, dry and cordless vacuums | Wet and dry boat vacuums on 12 V, cordless wet and dry vacuums, and wet and dry shop vacs for marinas and yards, with EU compliance priced into the quote. |
The wider marine range
For marine buyers we also source the rest of the deck and hull cleaning kit: telescopic poles in aluminium and fibreglass, boat hooks, marine sponges, wash pads and wash mitts, rope-handle buckets, collapsible buckets and cleaning caddies, hull scrub pads and non-woven abrasive pads, deck mops and squeegees. These goods are non-electrical and need no CE marking, which makes them the fastest to get on the water. Consumer goods still have to meet the general safety requirement of the General Product Safety Regulation (EU) 2023/988 (GPSR). The full list is on our marine cleaning page.
What we do not source, and why
- Cleaning chemicals, boat soaps and polishes. Different regulation, different factories.
- Microfibre, chamois, covers and textiles. A different manufacturing cluster.
- Branded goods of any kind. Buying branded goods from a contract manufacturer and importing them into the EU without the brand owner’s consent is trademark infringement. We source white-label and ODM products only, never a brand you do not own.
How an own-brand order runs
- Send a photo. A photo or link of a cleaning product you buy today, your current price and rough yearly volume.
- Get the benchmark. Within days, the factory cost of the same specification in euros and our view on whether switching is worth it. The benchmark report costs EUR 199 per product and is charged only if we find your product cheaper than you pay today.
- Samples. We pull physical samples at the factory, check them against your specification and get them to you.
- Production and inspection. We place the order on your behalf, visit the line during production and inspect before shipment. You see photos and reports.
- One container to your door. Eight to ten products from several factories, consolidated into one container with one set of documents. The factory invoices the goods to you; we invoice our service.
Our fees, and how they compare with other agencies, are on the pricing page and in our guide to China sourcing agent fees.
Who this is for
We work with buyers who can fill at least part of a container and reorder, typically companies spending from around EUR 200,000 a year on Asian goods. Below that, a European wholesaler is usually the better deal, and we will tell you so. Buyers who already have a supplier and only want a check can hire us for a factory visit or an inspection on a day rate.
Questions buyers ask
Do you take any money from the factory? No. Our commission is invoiced to you and published. If a factory offers us a kickback we refuse it and tell you.
Can we buy a well-known brand’s product from the factory that makes it? No, for the trademark reason above. A factory that produces for a known brand is a quality signal, and we use it as one.
Who is the importer of record? You are. The goods stay in your name. A consumer product placed on the EU market needs a responsible economic operator established in the EU (GPSR, Article 16; for CE-marked goods such as vacuums, Article 4 of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020), and we help you set that up.
How fast can the first container ship? For non-electrical goods with an existing specification: samples in two to three weeks, production typically four to six weeks, plus sea freight. Vacuums take longer because of the compliance file.
Can we check a supplier ourselves first? Yes. Our guide on whether Alibaba is safe and how to verify a Chinese supplier explains how to check a Chinese supplier before you pay a deposit.
